Chinese MMO Operator Sued Over In-Game Losses

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Chinese MMO Operator Sued Over In-Game Losses

Chinese MMO operator Shanda Entertainment is being sued by adenizen of the company's Legend of Mir II over the loss of 31 virtual items, all of which mysteriously vanished from the player's in-game inventory over the last year.

The player, surnamed Wen, is seeking a little over $14,000 USD in damages from the company in a suit filed in the Shanghai Pudong District People's Court.

Key to Wen's case is his assertion that the items were removed without prior warning by Shanda, and that during his time in Legend of Mir II he's invested nearly $30,000 in virtual items, goods and services.

Over the past few years, much debate has sprung up over how U.S. courts might view virtual item ownership under similar circumstances.

This case, however, should not be seen as a litmus test for that debate, and not simply because it occurs in China.

Legend of Mir II, like many Asian MMOs, measures player accomplishment levels by how much actual, real-world money they've invested into a particular game – a stark contrast with U.S. MMO titles that generally only ask players for a monthly subscription fee and as much of their free time as possible.

That distinction should make Wen's case a much simpler affair than if it were to occur here in the States. At the very least, it should indicate the sort of academic thinking that can, and inevitably will, be applied to the legal quagmire surrounding the innate value of virtual items.